For nearly a decade during the dawn of the 20th century, a lone — and furry — figure cut a criminal swath across South Dakota's badlands, evading government officials as well as seasoned trackers and bounty hunters.
At the peak of his infamy, the price on his head totaled $500 — the equivalent of about $6,000 today. He was the Custer Wolf, a North American gray wolf (Canis lupus) so-named for the nearby town of Custer, South Dakota. The four-legged outlaw that preyed on livestock was widely reviled as a scourge of farmers and ranchers, but was also a source of fearful speculation, rumored to be an enormous monster possessing supernatural powers that prevented its capture.
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